A veteran New Orleans teacher accused of choking and punching a McDonogh 42 Elementary Charter School sixth-grader told a Criminal District Court magistrate on Friday that he had no similar incidents in his past.

Walter S. Owens, 57

Walter S. Owens, 57, who has taught for more than three decades despite a previous drug possession conviction in the city, then heard Judge Gerard Hansen set his bond at $10,000. He appeared ready to post it after his brief first-appearance hearing concluded.

"This incident is the only blemish on Mr. Owens' record, in terms of his school career," said Bruce Ashley, the teacher's defense lawyer, afterward. He declined to discuss his client's case further.

New Orleans police booked Owens with cruelty to a juvenile after he allegedly attacked 12-year-old Quinton Matthews in the McDonogh 42 building midday Thursday. Court documents released Friday allege that the 6-foot-5, 195-pound teacher squeezed Quinton's neck during an argument and struck him in the face with a closed fist, bruising the youth's left eye.

The school called 911 about 12:01 p.m. Police showed up and discussed the incident with McDonogh 42 principal Marion Johnson, who led the school's on-scene investigation. Officers took Owens into custody and brought him to jail. School officials immediately suspended him.

Meanwhile, Emergency Medical Services paramedics examined Quinton at the school, court records stated, and the boy told The Times-Picayune that his mother drove him to a hospital. He did not go to classes on Friday, according to his mother, Norelle Matthews.

Quinton alleged during an interview Thursday that Owens, his English and science instructor, hit him at the end of a practice fire drill, after realizing that a back building door was left open.

Owens spent some of 36 years as a teacher in his home state of New Jersey before moving to New Orleans, where he has worked in schools for almost 20 years, Ashley said.

Owens' career survived a possession of heroin arrest in October 1990. Court records show he pleaded guilty as charged four months later, received five years of probation and enrolled for treatment at Bridge House, a long-term drug and alcoholism rehabilitation facility in New Orleans.

Owens, who lives in the 4500 block of Crowder Boulevard, proceeded to find jobs at several schools in the city, Ashley said. About two years ago, he landed one at McDonogh 42, whose charter was issued by the Recovery School District.

The RSD requires teachers to disclose their criminal record and get fingerprinted as part of a background check before qualifying for employment.

Lawyer Tracie Washington, vice-president of the Treme Charter School Association, which manages McDonogh 42, said on Friday that until an internal investigation and hearing are concluded, her organization will not discuss Owens' employement application process.

"I don't want to in any way taint the legal process." Washington said.